New Basel Convention push to address e-waste

Parties to the United Nations’ Basel Convention have reached accord on new initiatives to address mounting volumes of electronic waste.
At the eighth conference of parties (COP-8) held in the Kenyan capital of Nairobi, there was an agreement to: promote clean technology and phase out hazardous substances; collaborate in combating the illegal waste trade; and to develop pilot take-back systems, especially in developing countries. A Basel Convention working group will prepare a plan relating to the environmentally sustainable management of electronic waste for consideration in the autumn of 2008.
It had been anticipated in some quarters that the COP-8 gathering would usher in a ban on exports of hazardous waste to developing countries, but the matter was shelved until the next conference in the autumn of next year.
At the same meeting, the Basel Convention parties reaffirmed that the global ship recycling law being developed by the International Maritime Organisation (IMO) should impose levels of control equivalent to those of the Basel Convention. Clear responsibilities should also be outlined for all stakeholders, it was added.